I Become a Mafia in the Academy

Chapter 58

Simultaneously, the sensation of floating and the sudden drop of my body.

Passing through the darkness like that, I braced myself for the fall, applying appropriate force to both legs and touching the ground with one hand to disperse the impact as I landed.

Thud─!

After making a perfect landing, I looked around.

"Hmm, just like in the game."

A group of goblins surrounding me. Each one holding a wicked weapon in their hand.

Clubs, rusty daggers, bones of large animals, awls made from carved bones, and maces made of stone.

No matter how crude the weapons were, they were sufficiently threatening objects to ordinary people.

Well.

"Do you know that?"

That's not all.

I immediately pulled out [Capone's Tommy] from the cube and aimed it at the goblins surrounding me.

"You can't stop a gun with such crude weapons."

──!/──!/──!/──!/──!/──!/──!/──!/──!/──!/──!/──!/──!/──!/──!/──!/──!/──!/──!/──!

Instantly, blood, bone fragments, flesh, and screams resounded through the dark cave.

The goblins, stunned by the overwhelming violence and firepower, immediately turned their backs and tried to escape into the cave, but no matter how hard they struggled, they could not outrun bullets.

As I advanced, swinging Tommy like a comb, a particularly noticeable goblin appeared ahead.

"......Found it."

Unlike the shriveled green goblins, this strange goblin had a brilliant golden body.

Realizing that this was the 'Golden Goblin' I was looking for, I quickly rushed towards it and grabbed its head with my left hand, which was not holding Tommy.

"Kyaaak──!!"

"One down."

I snapped its neck to prevent it from screaming any further.

Golden Goblins are a kind of bonus mob, a mutant species of goblins that hide in various parts of the dungeon.

Unlike other goblins, their mana stones have a faint golden glow, which in the game could be submitted to the academy for additional points in the 'Class Ranking Tournament'.

"......The kids should know how hard I'm working down here."

The reason I go to such lengths for these insignificant monsters is just one.

The Class Ranking Tournament is that important of an event.

The higher the class ranking, the more support and facility convenience you get from the academy, and the curriculum itself changes completely.

In terms of the game, there were routes you couldn't take depending on how you handled this event.

That's why terms like 'Rank Reset' were coined, referring to repeatedly going through the class ranking tournament while following the academy route.

Even if all other conditions are met, if you can't pass this first hurdle, it's discrimination, but...... this is also allowed because the academy is an institution for training heroes.

Training heroes means raising talents for humanity, not just ordinary students.

"I just needed to extract the mana stone, right?"

I inserted my hand into the golden goblin's chest and pulled out the mana stone.

Unlike other mana stones, this one boasted a brilliant golden glow. After placing it in the cube, I recalled that golden goblins collect various treasures, and looked in the direction the goblin was heading.

"Is the nest over there?"

One of the characteristics of golden goblins is their instinctual love for treasures, which they collect in their nests.

In other words, the hidden reward of this dungeon is in their nest.

Although the items that come out are limited to those useful only in the early stages, that's a flaw, but......

Considering the events that will follow, it wouldn't hurt to collect them.

Closing my eyes to focus, I sensed the living beings around me filled with fear towards me.

Was it because this is their nest? Despite feeling fear, they seemed ready to attack me from various hiding spots.

Of course.

"They're just goblins after all."

I continued to advance, firing bullets at every location where I suspected goblins to be.

Midway, I felt a familiar presence of magic power, as if someone was sensing me, but judging by the familiar feeling, it seemed the kids above knew I was gone and were searching.

"The kids will handle that part."

This is none other than a goblin dungeon.

In the past, Ji Soohyun even sent me to an uninhabited island just for this day, so there's no way they wouldn't conquer it, right?

Even if they do something weird, with the kids from 'Familia' by their side, they should be able to conquer the goblin dungeon with overwhelming results compared to other classes, even without me.

As I walked silently, snapping the necks of any goblins I saw, extracting their mana stones, and occasionally throwing stones, I continued to advance forward.

"Good, just as I remembered."

Finally, the entrance to what I presumed to be the nest of the golden goblins came into view.

There were three golden mana stones inside the cube.

Usually, there are about ten golden goblins per dungeon, and most of them hide in their nests when an intruder appears, so it was likely that the remaining golden goblins were hiding inside the nest.

In other words, it's practically a treasure vault.

And what's more important is.

"FBI OPEN UP!!!"

Kicking down the crude bone-made door and entering, I saw one peculiarly shaped goblin among the startled golden goblins.

"Found it."

The real treasure.

Golden Hobgoblin.

This creature was the hidden boss of this dungeon.

"Kieeek! Kieek! Human! Human! Human!"

The golden hobgoblin, upon seeing me, started screaming and jumping up and down on the spot.

"Yes, it's the human lord. Have you collected my treasures well?"

"Human! Intruder! Kill! Kill!"

Already excited and screaming loudly upon seeing me.

Not expecting to be able to communicate anyway, I pulled out Tommy and aimed it at the creature.

"Yes, dance for me."

Pulling the trigger, I sprayed bullets at the golden hobgoblin and the surrounding golden goblins.

At the same time, the golden goblins fell to the ground. There were six of them.

"......Looks like it won't be easy."

Suddenly, I noticed the creature hanging from the ceiling, glaring at me.

'Golden Hobgoblin'. Its other nickname in the game is 'Golden Flash', named for its ability to disappear in a flash when it sparkles.

It's a perfect ability for escaping with treasure.

Does it need such an ability to become the king of golden goblins?

There's no need to waste time here.

Quick battle, quick victory.

I decided to finish it quickly.

Putting the gun back into the cube, I rolled up my sleeves and faced the creature.

It was glaring at me, ready to pounce at any moment.

"You said you'd kill me? Come at me."

After putting away the gun and beckoning with my finger, the creature appeared in front of me in a flash.

"Come on, try it."

"Kieeek!"

I provoked it by beckoning with my finger without any guard.

As expected, it got furious and appeared in front of me in a flash.

"Die, human!"

The dagger in its hand thrust towards my chest.

They say force is proportional to speed and mass, right?

As a liberal arts student, I don't know the details, but one thing's for sure: if that dagger stabs me in the chest at that speed, it's instant death.

That's if it hits, of course.

"That's why I had a tough time in the game."

But anyone who's been hit by it a few times knows one thing.

Its first attack always aims for the heart.

And there's nothing easier to block than a punch with a predetermined target.

I grabbed the dagger with the hand I had already positioned near my heart.

It probably intended to pierce my heart along with my hand, but it must have been quite shocked when my leather-gloved hand didn't get pierced.

"Yeah, you did well coming here."

Of course, the dagger in its hand didn't fail to cause damage.

In the end, it only couldn't pierce through the glove, but the impact from the thrust of the dagger was fully transmitted to the hand inside the glove, making me worried if it might have created a hole.

So, I tried to deliver a counterattack, encapsulating that pain.

"Kieeek!"

My fist falls onto its head like a hammer.

But since it was one of the few creatures that could escape, I couldn't land a direct hit.

It was because it quickly dropped the dagger and rolled away just before being hit.

After retreating like that, it pulled out the dagger that was stuck in the ground and pointed it at me again.

"The instructors outside are going to have a hard time."

This creature is far beyond what a freshman could handle.

If I hadn't told Instructor Ji Soohyun beforehand, it wouldn't have been strange to immediately summon it back for safety reasons.

"Then, let's really play for real."

I smash through the door by hitting the wall next to it.

The best way to deal with it is to not leave any escape routes.

Since I have to search through its treasure vault to go back up anyway, there's no reason for me to retreat.

──Sparkle.

As a flash bursts before my eyes, I swing my fist.

"Kkeeaak──!!"

My fist lands on its face at the same time.

"You only come at me from the front, anyway."

The moment it showed its speed in front of me, the outcome was practically decided.

0.5 seconds after the flash. That was its pattern.

As I reach out to grab its collar, another flash rushes in. It had retreated backward.

"Where do you think you're going?"

As I charge at it, another flash bursts out.

Its figure disappeared, but I didn't panic. Instead, I ducked and swung my leg behind me at the same time.

"Kyak?!"

"Yeah, I know you can come from behind too."

I've hit your neck so many times, how could I not know your pattern?

Its body falls backward, then I quickly mount it, taking the top position.

"Ta-da. Now you can't run away anymore, right?"

"You, human! Don't kill me! There's treasure──"

"Everyone in the country knows what you're holding in that interdimensional storage of yours, so what's with the nonsense?"

I then smash its face with my fist like a hammer.

"Pweup──!!"

Its teeth fly up into the air.

Well, even if not everyone in the country, most users who played CS knew where its treasure vault was.

"Here! If I let you go because I believed your lies! You'd run to the vault! You bastard!"

I completely smash its face to stop it from spouting more nonsense.

"You're making me remember the old days."

I, too, once fell for its words and tried to negotiate.

Thinking I could beat it moderately and negotiate a reward since I was on the non-lethal route, but it opened a dimensional gate and escaped into its vault.

Back then, how empty did I feel?

In the end, when I raised another non-lethal character, I remembered taking half its life and then taking the key.

"The key. I'll take it."

Saying so, I grab its trembling right arm and break off its thumb.

"Key... Kieeek...!"

"Shut up, will you?"

After another hammer strike to silence it, I check its thumb.

A small inscription drawn on the thumb.

[You have discovered a new item!]

[Name: Interdimensional Storage]

[Rank: Unique]

[Type: Inscription]

[Description: This is the key to a 13m² interdimensional storage. Draw a circle while holding up your thumb, and the door to the vault will appear. It can be inscribed on the body or an item.]

"──Found it."

My precious.